Of course being a guitarist for most of my life I've recorded with various things, whether it be a 8 track, camera, or straight up m-audio box for my computer. But I was wondering about recording with a mic purched up beside a cab, I know many musicians do this, but which mic is the best for it?

I'd love some of your guys' imputs!

Thanks! Best regards, Cory.

I would say all pro musicians use a mic because a good mic will sound better than anything else. However getting good a micing and stuff takes time and at first will not sound that good because you have to learn to realize that the sound getting picked up from the mic that is directly on the grill of a cab is different than the sound going up to your ears.

I say do it, get a shure sm57 and experiment.

shure sm57 isn't a bad start, but you can do way better. Not for the price of a used one though xD. Mic's will always sound better than direct.

Would there be a direct plug in for my computer? If not what would I use to record with it.

I would say for 99 bucks (even less used) the sm57 cant really be beat. Its tried and true and everyone has em.

you are suggesting recording with a dynamic mic? you can find a large diaphram condenser mic for $100 -you will need a mixer or even a preamp that has phantom power and also a sound card in your computer to plug the mixer into. trust me, next to a "ribbon mic" a condenser is the best to record with. audio technica is a great brand of mic, there are others that are less expensive.

This post was edited by juliusjuice on Aug 10 2009 03:45pm

Yes i would say that a dynamic mic will be the best choice for someone who has never used a microphone before. There is a reason why the sm57 is one of the most popular and used mics for cabinet mic'ing. If he gets a ribbon or a condenser chances are he will not do too well and give up easily because of the particular "lo-fi" sound that they have. While this is desirable in some cases to get guitars to sit well in a mix. A dynamic can withstand the high volumes that are necessary to get a big sound on an a recording. I stand by my suggestion of the sm57. You can also look at the Sennheiser e609

Honestly, if you buy a Sm57, then "boil it" (remove the transformer inside) you really cant beat the response that you will get.
Condenser sound terrible on cabinets, especially with any kind of distortion or high treble gain, stay away from them.
Ribbon mics are too trashy for anything with high attack, I wouldnt recommend one for any electric cabinet.
Get a sm57, and a nice pre, and you will use it forever.

I use a single SM57 about an inch off-center of a speaker for a really crunchy tone, I will add another SM57 or e609 a bit back and towards the edge if I want a thicker tone. If you are playing metal, the SM57 is great.

Yea, but if you use 2 mics, you need to phase one of them out